Compliance Resources to Help you Stay Current

The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009 (AML/CFT Act) in New Zealand requires that organizations carry out customer due diligence on anonymous accounts, collect relevant customer data and further streamline annual reporting requirements so as to deter such crimes. It applies to financial institutions, casinos and any other person required by any other Act to comply with the legislation. 

ISO 22301 is an international ISO standard that specifies requirements for the setting up of and management of an effective Business Continuity Management System (BCMS).

This article discusses the applicability of the standard, the model its based on and summarizes its key requirements.

The European Banking Authority (EBA) has published its new Guidelines on Internal Governance. These aim at enhancing and consolidating supervisory expectations and improving the implementation of internal governance arrangements for individual institutions and the banking system as a whole.

This article gives a brief summary of the EBA Guidelines.

Sections 801 to 807 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002 are known collectively as the Corporate and Criminal Fraud Accountability Act. The Act details criminal penalties for securities fraud and protects employees-turned-whistleblower of publicly traded companies from retaliatory actions by their employers.

This article gives an overview and summary of requirements of the Corporate and Criminal Fraud Accountability Act.

President Barack Obama has announced that federal regulatory agencies have reviewed and will soon start a rollback of outdated and cumbersome regulations. The scrapping of regulations is expected to “eliminate millions of hours in annual paperwork burdens for large and small businesses and save more than $1 billion in annual regulatory costs”.

This article details the background to this regulatory reform and its expected impact on US businesses.

The SEC’s new whistleblower program came into effect on August 12, 2011. As part of this program, the agency also unveiled a website to help people report violations of federal securities laws and apply for a financial award.

This article discusses the background, highlights of the program, the final rule and response from industry.

In October 2009 the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) released its final Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. The Guides revise the FTC's initial guidelines published in 1980, providing advertisers and spokespeople with insight on how to keep their endorsement and testimonial advertisements in compliance with the FTC Act, particularly in light of new issues posed by the emergence of social media. The Guides took effect on December 1, 2009.

This article gives the background to the Guides and provides a summary of the guidelines.

The Japanese Financial Instruments and Exchange Law (FIEL) or the Japanese version of the Sarbanes Oxley Act (J-SOX) is the main statute that codifies the securities law and regulates the functioning of financial companies in the country. It was enacted in 2006.

This article describes the background to the law, the provisions in the law that focus on internal controls and what differentiates it from the Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX) of the US.

The International Financial Reporting Standards or IFRS are a set of financial reporting standards, interpretation and framework issued by the International Accounting Standards Board. Worldwide, a number of countries have adopted or are in the process of adopting these standards, making it mandatory for profit making entities to comply with them.

This article primarily describes the background, requirements for financial statements and disclosures, and the status of adoption of the IFRS in various countries.

By July 1, 2011 any commercial organization either formed in the UK or having a business interest in the UK has to comply with the UK Bribery Act 2010. It is similar to the FCPA in the US but has many fundamental differences.

This article contains the details of the UK Bribery Act, its various sections, how the Act defines bribes and covered entities, the penalties and how to comply with it.

The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) of 1977 was created to implement stricter regulations against bribery. The act also includes requirements for transparency in accountancy under the SEC Act. It was signed into law by President Jimmy Carter and further amended in 1998 to include the International Anti-Bribery Act. The FCPA makes it illegal for a citizen or corporation of the United States or a person or corporation acting within the United States to bribe or seek advantage from a public official in another country.

European Union Competition Law regulates the exercise of market power by large companies, governments or other economic entities. In the EU, it is an important part of ensuring the free flow of working people, goods, services and capital in a borderless Europe. The main provisions of EU Competition law are contained in Articles 81 and 82 of the Amsterdam Treaty.

The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) obviously wants private equity (PE) firms to improve the environmental and financial performance of their portfolios. Towards this end it has designed a new program for use by PE firms.

PepsiCo is well on its way to becoming one of the world’s most sustainable companies. About a couple of years after it launched its Path to Zero program, the company has released an update on the progress it has made in respect of its environmental targets and its pursuit to become a fossil fuel-free operation by 2023.

Management acts on behalf of stakeholders and bring forth success for the company. When management fails to comply with its stipulated responsibilities, importance of following strong corporate-governance practices surfaces in order to protect interests of the stakeholders and to keep management in line.

Strict corporate governance results into superlative investment gains. Therefore, to fetching continual gains for the company and to creating ally between management and shareholders, practices such as independent board control, separation of the chairman and chief executive officer positions and appropriate compensation packages can prove to be useful.

The Chief Audit Executive (CAE) and his team of internal auditors have a clear mandate - sharpen their focus on business risk and add value by being more risk-centric. Evolved from an objective assurance and consulting activity, IA will address the growing needs of global organizations and meet the new expectations of investors and board members.